Daily Captain vs Finch
Checked 22 Sep 2026. Prices and features change; tell us if something is out of date: hello@dailycaptain.app.
Finch is a self-care app built around a pet bird that grows as you complete small daily goals, mood check-ins, breathing and reflections. It never shames you, the core is free, and Finch Plus is $9.99 per month or $69.99 per year for extras. It has three quarters of a million App Store ratings and a 4.9.
Daily Captain shares one thing with Finch and differs on everything else. The shared thing is the tone: no streak to lose, no red days, untick allowed. The difference is what the gentleness is for. Finch is self-care; Daily Captain is a goal sheet for adults who want to know whether today moved them toward something, with a real person as the witness instead of a bird.
If the bird works for you, keep the bird; it is free. If you have outgrown it, or want the same kindness pointed at your actual goals, this is that.
| Feature | Finch | Daily Captain |
|---|---|---|
| Built for | Daily self-care: mood, gratitude, breathing and small goals, with a pet that grows. | Deciding what today is for, and being honest about it at night. |
| Price | Core free. Finch Plus $9.99 per month or $69.99 per year. | 8 days free, then $9.99 a month. One price, everything included. |
| Free plan | Yes. Finch says the core will always be free; Plus adds cosmetics and extras. | No free plan. 8 free days, then one flat price. |
| A day looks like | A morning mood check, goals that send your bird exploring, reflections and gratitude at night. | One sheet a day: up to seven goals in the morning, one check at midday, an honest count and tomorrow’s first goal at night. |
| Platforms | iPhone, iPad and Android. | iPhone (App Store), Android (Google Play) and any browser. Same account everywhere. |
| Accountability | Friends by invite link, good vibes, goal buddies and accountability buddies. | One buddy sees your week and answers. A public page shows the goals you switch on. No feed, no ranks, no points. |
| Tone | Never makes you feel bad, by design. | Same: no guilt mechanics. The evening count is honest, not cheerful. |
| Streaks or points | Rewards, seasonal events with daily participation, outfits. | None. No streaks, no red days, untick allowed. A missed day leaves nothing to repair. |
| Integrations | None named. | None. No calendar sync, no task import. |
| Support | support@befinch.com, help centre, Discord. | A person answers at hello@dailycaptain.app, and feedback sits inside the product. |
Same kindness, different question
Finch proved something the productivity world needed to hear: people stick with a tool that never makes them feel bad. Daily Captain was built on the same belief. Untick anything. Miss a day. Nothing to repair.
The question each app asks is different. Finch asks how you are. Daily Captain asks what today is for, and at night, honestly, how much of it happened. It is not a mood tracker, and it will not ask you to breathe. It will ask you to write tomorrow’s first goal.
A person instead of a pet
Finch’s bird is the motivation: you do the goal because the bird goes exploring. Daily Captain’s motivation is a person. One buddy sees your week and answers. It is quieter, and for adults it tends to last longer.
One price, no shop
Finch’s core is free and its Plus tier sells cosmetics and events. Daily Captain has no shop, no events and no free tier: 8 free days, then $9.99 a month, and everyone has the same product. Which of those you prefer is a real choice, and Finch is cheaper if the free core is enough.
What people who leave Finch say, and what we did about it
We read every critical App Store review of Finch from the two weeks before 22 Sep 2026 (28 of them; the feed is that busy) and its Trustpilot reviews. Three themes came up most.
- Sponsored tie-ins replacing the monthly themes, and a free side that feels starved next to Plus.
- What we did: No ads, no sponsors, no shop and no free tier to starve. The price is the business model, and everyone gets the same product.
- Trials charged without warning, hard to cancel, support silent.
- What we did: The price is on the page before you start, and a person answers. We also charge after a free period, so we say the date plainly and you can cancel any time.
- Crashes, lost data, and streaks lost with them, which stings after months.
- What we did: There are no streaks to lose and no red days. On crashes we have no track record yet and say so; your writing exports as plain text whenever you like.
Sources: Finch on the App Store, Finch on Google Play, Finch on Trustpilot
Pricing
Finch
Finch’s core features are free and, in Finch’s words, will always be. Finch Plus is $9.99 per month or $69.99 per year. Read in Finch’s help centre on 22 Sep 2026.
Daily Captain
Every account starts with 8 free days. After that it is $9.99 a month, one flat price with nothing behind a second wall: the buddy, the yearly goals, the reminders and the apps are all in it. Plus tax where it applies, shown before you pay. Cancel any time and your writing stays readable.
There is no free plan. If you want the method for free, the paper version, the Daily Goal Sheet PDF, is at heegstra.io/goal-sheet.
Sources: Finch Plus pricing, Daily Captain pricing, on the home page
When to choose Finch
- You want it free.
- You want mood tracking, breathing, gratitude and mental-health exercises.
- The bird genuinely motivates you.
- You like seasonal events and a big, warm community.
When to choose Daily Captain
- You have outgrown the pet but want to keep the kindness.
- You want the day judged by goals reached, not self-care done.
- You want a person, not a bird, to see your week.
- You want one flat price and no shop.
Trying it
Nothing to import and nothing to set up. Sign in, write what today is for, and tonight write tomorrow’s first goal. If it is not for you after 8 days, nothing has happened to your card and you have lost about a minute a day.
Questions
Is Daily Captain free like Finch?
No. Finch’s core is free. Daily Captain has 8 free days and then one flat price of $9.99 a month.
Does Daily Captain track mood?
No. At night it asks for one word for the day and whether anything got in the way, no guilt, just notes. That is as close as it gets.
Does Daily Captain have streaks?
No. No streaks, no red days, no guilt mechanics. You can untick anything, and a missed day is just a day.
Why does someone else see my week?
Because being seen works, the way people work harder in a library than alone at home. One person who knows what you set out to do is enough. They see exactly what you wrote, and only when you send it.
Why goals instead of to-dos?
Because being busy is not the same as getting closer. A to-do list holds everything you could do; a goal sheet holds the few things that move you toward what you want, and asks at night whether they happened.
How long does Daily Captain take each day?
About a minute in the morning, a moment at midday and a couple of minutes at night. There is no setup and no onboarding: you sign in and write today’s first goal.
